How will I know if they’re just playing or fighting?

Question

I have a 3 month old mini Australian Shepherd and a 8 year miniature pinscher (both are males btw). The puppy will pick at and bite the other dog which leads to him sometimes snapping. However this morning they were almost bear hugging and the older dog was biting the puppy on his neck. Usually the puppy screams if it’s too hard but the neck biting looked to be a little much. How can I know the difference between them fighting and playing?

Answer

At that age the puppy is still learning what bites are okay for playing and which ones hurt. Because it’s a puppy it’s got a lot of energy and if he keeps pushing your other dog too much to play,  and the older dog doesn’t want to play, he will “snap” at your puppy to let him know that the puppy needs to back off! It’s a way of putting the puppy in his place basically! To find out what’s playing and what’s not look at their ears, their tail, their mouths and eyes. I am a dog trainer so I know what to look for and i know it may looking confusing at first but its all about their body language!

Answer

I have a 2 year old male cat and a 9 week old male kitten. They do this. they're probably playing, if they weren't then they would have some injuries. If they were fighting, the one loosing would likely hide and give up. don't worry too much about it unless things get really aggressive.

How will I know if they’re just playing or fighting?

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